


self-esteem to match

by afrocurl



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, Brotherly Affection, Coming of Age, M/M, Matchmaking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-02
Updated: 2013-07-02
Packaged: 2017-12-17 11:43:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/867153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afrocurl/pseuds/afrocurl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alex's life was turned upside down on a Tuesday morning, but in the end, that was all for the best.</p>
            </blockquote>





	self-esteem to match

**Author's Note:**

  * For [avarry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/avarry/gifts).



> It's my sincere hope that this fits the prompt, and I hope you enjoy it!

It was a very near thing, but Alex _did_ manage to avoid smashing his office phone (Erik's phone, really) after he took a call from Scott's all-too-specialized, all-too-pro-mutant school. He had an excuse, though, he thought: that phone call had certainly been nothing like he had expected for a Tuesday morning, especially not when he was knee-deep in his latest project.

_I’m sorry, Mr. Summers, but Scott’s manifested today; no one was harmed, though he did burn down a portion of the soccer field and a basketball hoop. Per school policy, he’ll need to be kept home until he can control his mutation. I hope you understand that this policy has been in place for years and we can’t make any exceptions. If you have any further questions, please call the school and I’ll be glad to speak to you. Thank you and have a pleasant day._

That was a joke if Alex had ever heard one - but it was the bad kind of joke and now he had to tamp down on his anger, because it would set off his own mutation, and this office wouldn't survive the first plasma burst. Erik had very little tolerance for mutations destroying his personal (really company) space. There were very few rules at Lehnsherr Aeronautics, but _that_ was the cardinal rule, and the one that was most often used as grounds for termination.

Having come within a hair's-breadth of breaking this phone and with his rage now more than enough to bring the whole building crashing down with laughably little effort, Alex tried to calm himself down, school himself into some semblance of reason. He still had a meeting with Erik later in the day to go over plans for the new energy plant that they had been designing for for Tony Stark - though Alex had no clue why the man couldn’t design it himself given his intellect and proclivities.

He took a few relaxing breaths - still ashamed that he had paid attention to that seminar on meditation Erik had forced the whole office to go to - and settled back down to take another look at the plans for Stark's design. It was going to rely on some of Alex’s strength with harnessing energy from mutants like himself, but there were still some snags in how to capture that energy safely.

One more problem in his day. Just his luck.

-

“What’s eating you?” Erik asked as soon as Alex sat down next to him at the bar. Erik’s easy demeanor was more than enough to make Alex want to punch something, but he already knew that destroying any object within sight of his boss was a horrible-no-good-very-bad idea.

“Why would you say that?” Alex asked back, defensive as always. He was not about to air out his dirty laundry to the man who basically underwrote his lifestyle. Even if that lifestyle was going to take a nose dive with Scott’s manifestation.

“Well, for one thing, you have your scowl on - not the usual one - and that never means anything good. So: problem. Scott? Again?”

Alex sighed, before saying anything. “He manifested at school. They won’t let him back until he has his power under control. But given his mutation, which is _shooting plasma beams from his eyes_ , I have no clue when I can get him fitted for anything, _and_ give him time to adjust to it. You couldn't let me go on leave for a few months while I go sort this out?”

It was Erik’s turn to sigh. “ _Fuck_ no. You're too integral to this Stark deal, so you're stuck with me and the office.” Erik paused, taking a large sip from his martini before he said anything else. “I might know someone who knows someone who could help you, though.”

Alex could only shrug and let Erik keep going. “Charles’ old TA has a knack for creating technology that’s useful for certain mutants, and he’s also nearly as smart as Charles. Scott’s in seventh grade, isn’t he? I’m sure Hank can be useful.”

"Is this guy - Hank - trying to take over the world or something? Is that why he might want to help a twelve-year-old control his mutation?"

"Hank's too much like Charles to want to take over the world." Erik rolled his eyes. "Right now all Hank wants is another post-doc placement, I think."

Alex watched as Erik tapped his temple - one telltale sign that he was talking to Charles - before he said anything else. "Hank's not busy, and he can meet you at the office tomorrow, if you want to talk about Scott."

“Since it doesn’t seem like I have a choice, okay. Tomorrow’s fine. Just make sure that you don’t forget when I can’t get all the details for whatever changes Stark will make into the nightly report.”

“Deal, Summers. Now go home and stay with your brother. He’s probably confused.”

Alex left, pretty much obediently, because he never looked a gift horse like that in a mouth.

(Besides, it was a little funny to watch Erik when he was pretending to have a heart.)

-

The apartment was pitch-dark when he finally turned the key and opened the door. “Scott, dude, where are you?” 

It was a piss-poor decision to leave Scott at school with no one to be with, but there wasn’t time in Alex’s day to lose two hours to picking Scott up, taking him home, and then getting back to work. At the end of the school day, someone had managed to get Scott home without any further incidents and all was supposedly well. 

He had left Scott - confused and alone - and he was going to pay for it now.

He got no answer now, but Alex could smell all kinds of char in the air, and he was smart enough to know what that meant: Scott had inadvertently been using his powers since getting home.

Thank fuck there was insurance on the house that protected them both from mutation-related difficulties in the apartment.

“Scott, if you can keep your power in check through tomorrow, I should have someone to help you with them and keep you up to date with school at the same time. How does that sound?”

There was still no answer, and Alex sighed heavily. It would be just the time that he and Scott would butt heads - as if they needed a reason - especially now that his little brother had manifested. Alex remembered just how hard it had been for him to handle his powers when Scott was little, and how that meant that Alex’s current job was still a miracle to both of them.

“Fine, Scott. Hide if you’re scared. Erik knows a guy who might be able to help and he’ll be over tomorrow after I make sure he won’t kill you. Sleep well!”

Nothing left for him to do. Scott wasn’t big on talking anyway, and given what the woman from Scott’s school had said, Scott had nearly killed his teacher and three classmates when his eyes started to emit red plasma rays, though it was fortunate for everyone that no one had died.

-

When Alex walked through the lobby of Lehnsherr Aeronautics the next morning, he immediately caught sight of the unfamiliar face: one that belonged to a lanky guy, whose glasses screamed _hipster_ , sitting hunched over on one of the sofas.

Then the guy got up - he was _tall_ \- and started to follow Alex, and if Alex hadn't assumed that this guy ought to be in a lab somewhere, he'd have beaten this new person to within an inch of his life.

Instead, Alex tried to ignore him, but the other guy just persisted. Alex was just bracing himself for a very, very awkward silence in the elevator when the guy finally said something. “Charles told me what you looked like and I figured I’d follow you up and we could discuss things. Is that alright?”

Alex wanted to get annoyed at Charles for telling this guy - who was most likely Hank - what Alex looked like, but he swallowed that urge and thought about his current problems instead.

"Charles - well, Erik - didn't tell me anything about you, so you've got me beat about right now. Give me a minute to get some more coffee, and we'll talk."

He still wasn't above exacting some petty revenge, however, so he took his time with pouring his coffee and then getting around to actually drinking it, just to make Hank sweat a little.

That was an asshole move, he knew, but it was something that he always did when sizing up clients the first time.

Five minutes later, he walked back to his office, looking at Hank sitting in front of his desk. Hank sat as straight as possible and looked incredibly young, despite his height. 

“So, what did Erik forget to tell me yesterday?” was Alex’s first question. Again, it was an asshole move, but he had no problem getting out his issues before he started to pay Hank for the joy of looking after Scott.

He didn't think it was possible, but Hank actually tried to shrink back further into the chair before saying anything. “I’m rather shy, but I suppose you’re figuring that out.”

“That’s an understatement, but what else should I know, before I entrust my little brother to you for tutoring and working on his mutation?”

"I - maybe neither Erik nor Charles ever might have mentioned to you that I'm responsible for creating Cerebro. You know, the machine that enhances Charles's telepathy, the thing that allows him to hear the whole world."

Alex nodded. 

“I created that and I’m sure that I can help Scott with his...” he trailed off.

“Plasma beams from his eyes.”

“So, he’ll need some set of glasses to keep them under control?”

"Sounds like an idea; well, it's the only one I've heard so far. I haven't seen him since yesterday, when I was informed that he manifested. He's been avoiding me."

"Oh. Well." Hank visibly gathered his courage and hurried on. "So if this arrangement is okay with you, I'll go see him in a few minutes, and start looking into how I can help him with his mutation before we can even think about schoolwork. Fair?"

“I don’t really have any other choice if I want him to go back to school. Yeah, you’re hired.”

Alex spent another twenty minutes giving Hank a set of keys to the apartment and a few details about Scott’s general attitude.

It was all he could do right now. Once Hank left, it was time to hope for the best.

-

It turned out his best was pissing off Scott more than usual. 

Hank, it seemed, had spent the entirety of that first week asking Scott questions about the nature of his mutation (fuck if Scott knew beyond my eyes open and red rays explode out and shit burns) and how it might be contained.

Clearly Hank was as much of a science geek as Charles was. 

However, knowing that Hank was making Scott’s days miserable did little to help Alex understand Scott’s actual problems. As usual Scott was nothing but taciturn when it came to talking about the time Hank was spending at the apartment, other than: "He's asking too many questions that I don't have the answers to, and I still can't open my eyes when he's there. This whole thing is stupid."

It left Alex itching between wanting to ask Hank if everything was going well, and wanting to leave the big guy well enough alone.

Alex was never good at answering those questions and so he left it alone. 

-

It took another two weeks for Scott to stop complaining about Hank’s questions, but that didn't mean that there was any good news.

“He’s working on some glasses, but I don’t understand what he says when he tries different colored lenses. It’s all crap,” Scott had said over dinner tonight - the most he had heard from his brother since everything went to Hell in a handbasket.

“Well, at least he’s working on something. I’m starting to wondering if the money’s worth it right now.”

Alex was pretty sure that he'd be on the receiving end of a death glare if Scott could only open his eyes. As it was, Scott just directed a dire scowl somewhere in his direction, and tried to find his way from the table to the sink.

There was nothing else up for discussion, at least if Scott had his way.

-

"Erik, is there some way that I could talk to Hank about Scott? I'm starting to think that this tutoring and helping with powers is turning into something else entirely. Hank's been there for two months and Scott's still not back at school."

It was a stupid message to leave for his boss, but Alex really was not the target audience for the drama of the life of one Scott Summers.

By the end of the day, Erik had sent an email with a phone number and a terse note to not bother him again for Alex’s problems.

Alex would have laughed if he hadn’t wanted to come to work the next day.

-

Instead of making that call on Erik’s time, Alex stood outside their offices and carefully dialed a number he only vaguely recognized. Hank must have left it at some point, but it was clear that Alex hadn’t paid attention until now.

“Hank, this is Alex,” he said once the voicemail clicked over. “I’m a bit nervous about Scott’s lack of progress so far. He’s been working with you for two months. Will you leave me a note or stay later tomorrow to let me know about Scott’s progress?”

The walk home was a nice change of pace after that. 

Calming, even.

-

Erik managed to make the next day a living Hell for Alex: Stark’s plans still needed an overhaul, and it took every scrap of Alex's time and brain power to sort each and every problem out.

He just barely managed to crawl home after, muscles still cramping from sitting for hours on end, and just when he was about to grab a beer and unwind he found Hank sitting at the kitchen table.

“You told me to stay after today.”

Alex sighed. “Right, I did. Sorry. Long, long, _long_ day. How’s Scott really doing?”

“Well, I think I finally understand enough about his mutation to give him some appropriate glasses so he won’t have another outburst. As for his schoolwork, well, because I just figured out how to make it so he can see, he’s still behind. Once he can see during the lessons, I should be able to catch him up in a few more weeks. His school left some general work that we can work through quickly.”

“So he’ll be ready for school in what, a month? Six weeks?” Alex asked.

“That seems about right. Six weeks at the most.” Hank shifted from his spot at the table and came closer to Alex, which was only slightly unnerving. Alex realized, as Hank grew closer and closer, that he had never seen Hank at his full height. That first day, Hank had been slouching and then following behind him.

There wasn’t time for Alex to appreciate the figure of another man right now, though. Scott was more important than anything that might resemble a sex life.

Hank, however, didn’t stop his movements, until he was right up in Alex's personal space. Alex wanted to take a deep breath, but just as he started, Hank closed the distance between them and pressed his lips to Alex’s.

As far as a kiss went, it wasn’t what Alex had been expecting, but it wasn’t unwelcome either. He gave in, and let all of the day’s stress ebb away as Hank’s tongue kept up.

-

Hank kissed him senseless, and Alex went after him and kept kissing him, and only after they'd both run out of breath did Alex find out what the hell Hank was actually thinking.

“I kept trying to get Scott to talk while I was figuring out what to do with his eyes, and all he talked about was _you_. All the work you were doing, so he could have some kind of future. The fact that you never had anyone else come over to this place, that it was always just the two of you, and that you were still trying to focus on him even when you couldn't.” He stopped talking and stepped back. “I drew a conclusion based on limited evidence. Was it wrong?”

Alex could almost have laughed at the contrast: five minutes ago Hank had been all deliberate and purposeful, and now he was shy and nervous and on the verge of stammering.

“No, it wasn’t wrong. Just not what I was expecting. Not that it’s bad, mind you.”

It was just like him to sound like an ass right now. He had a guy in his apartment who wanted to kiss him - probably more if Hank’s insistence on a lack of personal space was an indication - and here he was fucking it up.

He hauled Hank back in by the collar, but just to peck him on his cheek, and as Hank tried to uncross his eyes he added, just to make sure Hank got the idea: "Okay, I'm going to shut the fuck up now and you're going to kiss me again or I'm going to kiss you, and whatever else you want to do to me I'm not going to say no."

-

Alex didn't say much of anything else for the rest of the night - and neither did Hank.

They might have both been screaming at some point, though.

-

The infernal shriek of the alarm clock woke Alex up at the usual time, and as he tried to roll over to kill the damn thing he found that he couldn't even move - he was tangled up in someone else.

When he could focus he realized, with not a little amusement, that Hank was clinging to him in his sleep - and that he was clinging back.

This kind of waking up was probably the most unexpected turn that the night had taken - but unexpected as it was, it really, really felt nice, too.

There was a loud bang from the kitchen that nearly had Alex running for the fire extinguisher and his cell phone, but once he'd fallen out of bed and picked himself back up and dashed for his brother, Scott turned around, red-lensed glasses firmly in place and wide awake and seeing.

Not only that. Scott was grinning at him in a way that made Alex want to brace himself or hit back or something.

"I heard you last night, dumbass. So now you owe me breakfast because I couldn't sleep. Oh, and Hank might want to eat something, too."

In the time it took for Alex to process that Scott had already run back to his room, laughing madly, and he was torn between following him and going back to hide in the covers next to Hank - but first things first.

He got the fixings for oatmeal and checked the fruit bowl's contents, and then - he started to plan the perfect murder. Scott's.

And he was still thinking about how he could easily dispose of Scott's body when Hank came into the kitchen, badly rumpled, and looking like he'd been ridden hard all night long. “I heard Scott already. Give him a break. He was looking out for you.”

Hank leaned in and kissed Alex firmly on the corner of his mouth.

"I don't need anyone setting me up with anyone else," Alex said, mostly fond with a side order of morning grumpiness. "Especially when the person doing the setting up is my own damn brother."

Hank let out a small laugh. “Yes, you do. Just accept it.”

There wasn't much Alex could do because he really did have to put breakfast on the table, so he schooled his face into some semblance of not-frowning before saying anything else. “Fine. But I don’t have to like it.”

“You just have to like me,” Hank added before he slid his body behind Alex’s. 

Alex forgot about murdering Scott as soon as he felt Hank’s growing erection.

**Author's Note:**

> Title nabbed from a Fall Out Boy song and thanks to my beta for her usual work.


End file.
